The small act of one, can touch many lives.
Staff of Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center’s Emergency Department and Dialysis Center in Bay Shore are using new scanners, ventilators and a patient monitoring system. What many may not know is the extraordinary woman whose generous donation made the purchase of this equipment was made possible.
Helen Dodd—who died in 2007, a few months before her 105th birthday—bequeathed to Good Samaritan Hospital a generous gift of $1.6 million. The intent of her donation was that monies be used to support health care services to the medically needy. Mrs. Dodd’s niece, Bettie Grinnell, and nephew, Arthur Field have provided direction as to her charitable legacy.
“I was not surprised by my aunt’s wishes to donate to Good Samaritan. She was very generous through the years to various organizations and members of her family. Helen lived life to the fullest—traveling the world while managing family funds with a keen eye for investing. She met many people less fortunate than herself in her travels, and I believe this is when she made a promise to herself to help those close to home,” said Mrs. Grinnell.
“Helen was a remarkable woman for her time. She was a working, college educated and independent person during the depression. She saw first hand the devastating effects the great depression had on her family,” said Mr. Fields.
Mrs. Dodd had the insight to plan ahead to guarantee that her wishes to fund health care for our under served community would be properly carried out. She believed in the mission of Good Samaritan Hospital and the hospital’s long-term future which is why she created a legacy gift to support it.
“We are grateful to Mrs. Dodd who used her estate to benefit others for many generations to come,” said The Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation Executive Director Kathy Dulanto. ~longislandexchange.com~
